Texas Democrat James Talarico Addresses Health Conspiracies, God Remarks
James Talarico, a Texas Democratic Senate hopeful, defended his campaign's handling of his absence due to illness and clarified controversial statements about God during a CNN town hall.
Texas Democratic Senate hopeful James Talarico addressed conspiracy theories surrounding his recent absence from the campaign trail and clarified comments he made regarding the nature of God during a televised CNN town hall. Talarico, who has been campaigning against Republican Ken Paxton, appeared with less than three weeks remaining before the midterm elections.
During the town hall, moderator Erin Burnett questioned Talarico about "wild speculation" that followed a nine-day hiatus from campaigning. Talarico explained that he had contracted a severe case of the flu, which prompted him to remain home to avoid spreading illness. He noted that his absence fueled "crazy" and false claims online, including that he had dropped out of the race or was in a mental health facility. "Conspiracy theorists can post anything they want on the internet. They get clicks," Talarico stated, adding that such claims spread widely online.
The Linder Center for Hope in Ohio, one of the facilities falsely implicated, publicly refuted the allegations.
In a segment of the town hall designed to foster discussion on contentious issues, Talarico faced a voter who inquired about his 2021 statement referring to God as "non-binary" during a Texas state legislature debate. Talarico admitted that his remark was intended to be "provocative" but defended the underlying theological concept as not controversial. He cited historical figures, including the late Pope Benedict, who have discussed the limitations of human categories in defining God. Talarico, who is also a seminary student, acknowledged that he is still learning to communicate effectively and accepted the feedback from the voter.
"When I said that I was being provocative... And I want to admit that and come clean about that," Talarico explained. "But I think what I was saying is actually not controversial theologically - the idea that we can't define God using human categories."
The voter, Sarah Gardner, a small business owner, responded by cautioning against the use of "modern cultural terms when talking about God," a point Talarico conceded was fair criticism. He likened his approach to preachers who might use shocking language in a sermon to capture attention, stating he aims to learn responsible communication methods.